Upstairs, Downstairs in Newport

Have at you!

We love Rhode Island. It's a charming state with great food. That's why, when we were invited to drive to Newport to watch a polo match, we didn't say no. We even brought one of our finds from Napa.

Dame Maggie Smith's Dubbel Brewday

A day before celebrating our independence from Europe, our cat Dame Maggie Smith decided to pay her respects to our Euro-friends by brewing up a Belgian-style dubbel ale, just to be contrarian. One of our mentors suggested that Mrs. Quail and I seem to be trying to turn our cats into Lolcats, but really, that's impossible. Our cats are not funny at all (except for Professor Moriarty. He's hilarious. But also quite possibly evil, so it's a bit awkward deciding whether to laugh at him.) We assure you, Maggie is all business as the new brewmistress of Ducksmack Ales. See for yourself!

1. This is a Smack Pack. You smack it to release yeast nutrients into the yeast. I don't think Maggie knows this; she just smacked it as a matter of course. Then she smacked me a little for good measure. Then Professor Moriarty smacked her, then she smacked him, and then we all had a good laugh.

Seeking out Saka Gura

As our stalwart readers know, we have rarely delved into full on restaurant reports.  This is partly because we primarily eat at home (else prodigious show-offs Dame Maggie and Prof. Moriarty would have no audience), partly because we typically forget to document anything whilst we are out and about, and partly because other websites like immaculate infatuation do it oh so much better.

Not so last Monday!  'Twas Mr. Quail's birthday (he turned a respectable age) and to celebrate we finally took the plunge and went to Sakagura.

For those not in the know, Sakagura is a sake bar/Izakaya in the basement of a relatively obscure office building a block away from the Chrysler Building.  Mr. Quail even worked in the building for a short stint (for a company that may or may not have "existed" in the eyes of "the man") but never ventured down to the hidden world below the elevator bank.

So, was our insatiable craving for all cuisine Japanese satisfied?

Two Quails Roosting in Wine Country, Part 2

See Part 1 of our adventure here.
  

Sweet local strawberries and blackberries, local goat cheese, a salmon mousse from Santa Rosa Seafood, and a wedge of Montbriac, a blue-brie cheese. Salut!

We would be remiss not to mention the utterly gorgeous cottage we rented for our trip to California's wine country, nestled in a meadow on the top of a hill outside Calistoga, quaint enough that deer, birds of prey, rabbits, lizards, and wild turkeys were our morning companions, but modern enough to feature a killer outdoor grill and indoor range that we made heavy use of during our five nights. This definitely beat waking up early to catch the end of continental breakfast service at some inn.

Two Quails Roosting in Wine Country, Part 1

Three days into our trip to the Napa Valley. Our trip is three days old, and we haven't visited a single vineyard. Can you believe that? Never fear, we'll get there, but until then we'll just have to tough it out with things like this:



Carnitas and Carne Asada from La Taqueria


Maybe it's hard to tell from the photos, but these were amazing tacos. All you Californians who complain on the east coast about the dearth of Mexican food? All is forgiven. I understand now.

A Sunday Supper with 311

Ahh, Sunday.  A relaxing day to do errands, hang out with great friends (at Maialino no less.  Mmm...Carbonara), nap with cats, and spend a delightful evening with 311.

About that last part. The building behind ours has a leaky chimney, and as a result from time to time we get a lovely whiff of heating oil in our apartment. Thus, we spent an entire evening on the phone with the Department of Buildings.  But as a great man once said, little setbacks like these are sometimes just what we need to take a giant step forward*. While still on hold, we managed to eke out Sunday supper at the Quails featuring greenmarket goods and pie (311 compelled us to retaliate with pie).

COURSE ONE: Whiskey sour

Call one: wait time 20 minutes. Result: dropped call as DOB specialist took down my complaint.

The secret to this whiskey sour? Eaaasy on the lemon. It's often too overpowering.

Grist and Grain

Today we have two subjects at hand, and both involve strange manipulations of grain. The first is a product we have come to admire: pasta made from farro by Rustichella d'Abruzzo. Farro is a grain more commonly known as spelt, and one commonly used in Italy. In this case we used their casareccia, which is somewhat like a penne that has been sliced lengthwise and twisted a bit. The second subject today is a tasting of The Bitter Drake, the Belgian-style ale brewed two months ago that (hopefully) is rounding into shape in time for summer. More on that later.

An Everyday IPA Update

Dear friends, we certainly would not want to leave you wanting resolution to the burning question on everyone's lips: how did the IPA turn out?

The Apartment Lab, or Adventures in Fermentation

In Jack London’s great novel The Sea Wolf, the cynical captain Wolf Larsen says, “I believe that life is a mess…it is like yeast, a ferment, a thing that moves…but that in the end will cease to move.” Wolf Larsen was a cheery fellow. But for all his certainty that yeast is something pointless to be dismissed, it really has an element of magic in it, don’t you think?

Armchair Mixology

Readers of this blog will know that we Quails are terribly fond of libations with a kick. The city has a number of terrific speakeasys (speakeasies?) slinging everything from Gin Gin Mules to Muskets--a new favorite invented (I believe) at Brandy Library. With fresh ingredients and wonderful ambience, the $12-18 (shudder) pricetag at these never-over crowded is justifiable on occasion--especially when you consider appetizers in this town run the same price. Side salad or Sidecar? I'll take the latter.

Mastering Margaritas

Cocktails in Manhattan are dangerous for your wallet. The cost of a drink at nice bars these days hovers around $12. A week ago we noticed that a martini at John’s Pizzeria in Times Square costs $13.25. In a pizzeria! So when we find a watering hole with a good deal, we pounce. When we first stumbled up the street to Harry’s Burritos, we were not impressed by the food. But the margaritas were pretty good, with a nice selection of tequilas at a reasonable price. In addition, they have a happy hour from 5 to 7, and another from 10 to 11. During that time, their house margaritas are $3, and beer is $2. This is exactly the type of deal that we are hoping to unearth on this page. Stop by Harry’s, and be sure to tip the bartender, who has the good sense to be named Travis. Recently we discovered another great deal just across the street from Harry’s: the recently redesigned China Fun. They added a cocktail menu that features $5 drinks, $5.50 for better quality liquors. We had Bombay Sapphire Martinis at China Fun just last night, and thought we’d gotten away with a steal.

While we’re on the subject of cocktails, these are some of our favorite cocktails to make for friends or to order at bars. The best cocktail book we’ve found is Ultimate Bar Book, by Mittie Hellmich (Chronicle Books).

• Martini (I like Bombay Sapphire gin, dry but not very dry, with olives)
  
• Margarita (on the rocks, usually no salt)
  
• Old-Fashioned (Bourbon, orange, bitters, sugar, rocks)
  
• Manhattan (Bourbon, sweet vermouth, bitters, cherry, straight-up)
  
• Presbyterian (Whiskey, ginger beer, club soda, candied ginger, lemon twist, rocks)
  
• Horse’s Neck (Same as Presbyterian, no club soda, add bitters, lemon peel)
  
• Godfather (Bourbon, a little Amaretto, rocks)
  
• Mojito (Light rum, lime juice, mint, sugar, club soda)
  
• Sazerac (Bourbon, dash of Ricard, bitters, sugar, lemon, rocks)
  
• Negroni (Gin, campari, sweet vermouth, club soda, orange slice)
  
• Sidecar (a great use of brandy - I use a slice of clementine, grand marnier or cointreau, straight up, no sugar on the rim)

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